1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to database security. More specifically, the present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for facilitating privileged object stores in a database.
2. Related Art
In database environments, users are typically associated with a set of privileges. Privileges associate permissions to perform various actions with a user or group of users. Exemplary action which may be subject to such permissions can include: executing a stored procedure, viewing a table, or performing any other action normally associated with databases.
In order to satisfy the security policy of their organization, users are typically restricted to performing specific operations. However, this is not necessarily sufficient to guarantee the security of a database. This is because in addition to low-level users who are subject to privileges, organizations typically have database administrators, security officers, and privileged users who are typically not confined by database permissions.
Currently, if a user needs to protect sensitive information stored in a database from a database administrator or a security officer, the user must depend on organizational policy and contractual obligations. Not only is it difficult to enforce security with these limited tools, but it is difficult to prove to auditors that such methods have effectively secured confidential data. For example, even if a security officer does not know a user's password and does not have access to a user's database objects, the security officer has the power to reset the user's password and to thereby gain access to the user's database objects. Furthermore, in many instances, the security officer has the ability to modify system audit logs to hide such activity.
In many systems, privileges can be inherited in the sense that a super-user has privileges over users who are lower in the hierarchy. However, sometimes a user who is lower in the hierarchy might be assigned work from a third-party which involves accessing database objects that the super-user should not be privy to. In such a situation, an organization is once again held hostage to the effectiveness of organizational policy and contractual obligations.
Hence, what is needed is a method to facilitate enhanced database security without the problems listed above.